


Growth

by ManaBanana



Category: Naruto
Genre: Gaara is super weird, Lee just rolls with it, M/M, but he's really trying
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-04
Updated: 2019-04-04
Packaged: 2020-01-04 12:42:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,356
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18343916
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ManaBanana/pseuds/ManaBanana
Summary: Gaara rarely allowed anyone inside of his greenhouse. But when he started crushing on Lee, he thought he'd make an exception to the rule.





	Growth

**Author's Note:**

> What's this?? Who's to say.
> 
> I'm in a GaaLee mood, babey! Thank you (again) to DrChickenSlinger who talked to me about the idea of Gaara making his own potting soil and singing to his plants.
> 
> Enjoy!

Gaara's greenhouse was one of his most sacred places. He would go inside and lose himself for hours caring for the plants, enjoying the solitude. Rarely ever did he allow anyone else inside.

Until he developed a bit of a crush.

When a certain taijutsu specialist made his way over to Suna with the rest of his team for a mission, Gaara's siblings noticed he was a little… distracted. When the three-man squad arrived in the desert earlier than expected, Gaara made a point to welcome the three of them to the village by taking them out to eat. For the duration of the meal, Gaara found his eyes glued to one particular member of this team--Rock Lee. The hard-working, combat-focused ninja with the cutest little turtle mouth Gaara had ever seen.

He was still a bit shy and was working on connecting with others, but Gaara really wanted to be better friends with Lee. He listened to Lee talk animatedly while his teammates corrected parts of his stories that got wildly out of hand. But the fire that burned in his excited eyes made its way to heat up Gaara's face. It was really just a quiet admiration.

Lee was also incredibly cute.

Lee's teammate Tenten must have noticed Gaara's fascination throughout the night. Especially the moment her eyes landed on the tiniest curve that formed on Gaara's lips.

“Hey, Neji,” she piped up after the group had finished eating. “Maybe you and I should go back to the guest house.” 

Neji didn't seem to pick up on the tone of her voice. Instead he went on about being so tired from Lee overexerting the team by trying to get to Suna twice as fast.

“I will come with you!” Lee said, much too loudly. “I can make the trip on my hands! Watch!”

His body was stopped by Tenten's quick hands that pushed his shoulders upright. “No, no! You should spend some time with the Kazekage. It would be good for you!”

Lee cocked his head to the side, but shrugged his shoulders. As Tenten and Neji left, Lee turned back to Gaara excitedly.

“Lord Kazekage! Did you want to see me walk on my hands through the village? I can do it, I--”

“That won't be necessary, Lee,” Gaara said softly. Lee looked down a little sadly, but didn't let his emotions get the best of him. They began moving through the village at a much slower pace than Lee was used to. Living in different villages, the two didn't have a lot of time to see each other, so Gaara was going to milk every last second. “Can I show you something?”

Lee nodded. “Anything for you, Lord Kazekage!”

Gaara directed his gaze to the ground in front of him. “Please call me by my name.”

Not long later, they arrived in the greenhouse together.

“These are my plants.” Gaara gave a light sweep of his arms, gesturing toward the massive expanse of greenery that surrounded them. He took his gourd of sand off his back and placed it near the door while Lee stepped further inside, gasping at every new species he saw.

“This is beautiful!” He bounced on his toes, eyes threatening to spill over with tears. “This is all yours?”

Gaara nodded quietly. He watched Lee walk around the greenhouse, awed by the part of Gaara's life he rarely shared with other people.

“I need to make more potting soil,” Gaara said quietly. “I would like for you to stay here… please.”

“Of course!” 

Lee took a spot next to Gaara, who began mixing soils together in a large container as he prepared to re-pot some of his newly propagated succulents. Lee watched him excitedly, but quirked his head when he noticed Gaara pull a long thread of sand from the gourd, which went straight into the mixture. He let a hand hover over it, continuing to combine the new soil without managing to touch it. He turned to Lee, who smiled wide. Gaara was quick to avert his gaze.

“Do you use the sand to stir it together?” Lee asked.

Gaara shook his head. “It's part of the soil. Coarse sand helps the water drain faster.”

They sat in silence, save for the sounds of potting soil lightly scraping on the sides of the container. “Do you use your own sand for all your mixtures?”

He didn't look up. The stirring became a bit slower and Lee opened his mouth to apologize for reasons he was unsure of.

“It's my mom's sand,” Gaara said.

Lee blinked. “Your mom's sand?”

Gaara stood up to retrieve the new pots. He nodded slowly. “She died. A long time ago. But it's my sand now.”

“I'm sorry,” Lee said. “If it is any consolation… I know what it's like to live without a parent.”

A solemn look crossed both of their faces. This wasn't the date night Gaara was hoping for. But he didn't want to dwell on it. At least Lee was giving him the time of day. 

“Thanks.”

They stood there, blanketed by the thick silence. Lee interrupted it with the sound of his footsteps as he approached Gaara.

“Can I help you? I am still unfamiliar with desert plants, but I have potted flowers before!” He gave Gaara a sympathetic smile and Gaara did his best to return it.

They sat on the floor, filling the new pots with the mixture while Lee tried to lighten the mood by talking about the goings-on in Konoha. The two learned more about each other as they planted the new succulents. After they had transferred everything over, Gaara allowed Lee to pick a place for them, and they admired their work.

“My friend Ino tells me plants like when you sing to them,” Lee said. He turned his gaze down to Gaara. “Do you sing to your plants?”

He shook his head. “I talk to them sometimes.”

“Oh!” Lee exclaimed. He took Gaara's small, smooth hand in his own. “Would you like to talk to them now?”

A worried look flashed across Gaara's face. Whether that was from their sweaty joined hands or Lee's suggestion was anybody's guess. “I usually do it… alone.”

“Oh,” Lee said, his eyebrows turning up under his bangs.

“But… we can both do it.”

Lee brightened at that and squeezed his hand, the bandages lightly scraping the inside of Gaara's palm.

He pulled Lee a little closer and walked toward one of the biggest cacti he had inside. It was a round, spiny cactus with a couple of pink flowers sprouting from the top, one of Gaara's oldest plants.

“Hello, Mother,” he said quietly.

Lee waved his free hand at the cactus. “Hi, Mrs. Gaara's Mom!”

Gaara pulled Lee a little closer and held his hand tighter. “This is Lee. He's my…” He looked up to meet Lee's gaze. “... My friend.”

Lee gave a thumbs-up.

“We fought together a long time ago. But we're friends now.”

“Gaara is a very excellent fighter!” Lee chimed in. “Your son is incredible!”

Gaara looked up at Lee, who continued to introduce himself and he ranted on about how much he learned from their fight as well as the growth he had seen in Gaara since he was saved by him after their villages became allies. He told her how proud he was to call him his friend.

When Lee looked back, Gaara was crying.

“Oh, no, Gaara, did I say something wrong?” He reached for Gaara's tear-stained cheeks to look into his eyes. The turtle mouth turned down even more.

Gaara shook his head. “I didn't know you thought all that about me.”

“Of course I do,” Lee said, pulling Gaara toward himself. They stood there while Lee wiped his cheeks and tried to calm Gaara down by holding him close to his chest. “I am very proud of you.”

They stayed in the greenhouse until it got dark and Gaara walked Lee back to the guest house, hand in hand. The whole walk back, Gaara felt his cheeks beginning to hurt over how much Lee made him smile.


End file.
